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Thursday, January 17, 2013

NewCath girls win another All "A" 9th Region crown; boys down Camels

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The Newport
Central Catholic Thoroughbreds girls basketball team tends to find itself at
the All “A” State Tournament on a yearly basis.

This group
did not want to end that run. So the host Thoroughbreds used their trademark
stingy defense to keep the string alive for their seventh consecutive 9th
Region All “A” crown with a convincing 49-34 win over the St. Henry Lady
Crusaders on Saturday.

The last
time NewCath did not win the crown was 2006 when Covington Holy Cross won it.
St. Henry has not won the title since 1996.

The
Thoroughbreds put constant pressure on the Lady Crusaders. St. Henry committed
20 turnovers to just eight for NewCath. The Thoroughbreds (13-4) recorded 10
steals to just two for the Lady Crusaders (8-9). Michaela Ware led NewCath with
three steals with teammates MiKayla Seibert and Loren Zimmerman recording two
each.

“(Ball pressure) is what we wanted to do coming into
the game,” said George Stoll, NewCath
head coach. “We wanted to get some easy
lay-ups if we could. We didn’t get as many as we like. But we got enough to get
by so we’ll take it.”

NewCath
standout junior forward Nikki Kiernan once again dominated the paint. She
recorded another double-double with 24 points and 13 rebounds to with two
blocked shots, an assist and steal. Kiernan earned Tournament Most Valuable
Player honors as a result.

“You just have to keep your ground and not go for ball
fakes,” Kiernan said of controlling
the paint. “I just go straight up (defensively).
I try to watch (the opponent’s) stomach.”

The
Thoroughbreds did record 13 more shots than the Lady Crusaders as a result of
the turnovers. They made 21-of-55 shots for 38 percent and held St. Henry to 29
percent shooting (12-of-42).

But NewCath
still had a hard time making outside shots. Kiernan made all three Thoroughbred
three-pointers. Ware was the only other NewCath player to reach double-digits
with 10 points.

“That’s part of having one of the best players in the
region on the team,” Stoll said. “She has to step up when we need her. We
needed her down the stretch. She was able to step up and make some shots down
the stretch. But we need to have other players step up too.”

NewCath
also hit just 4-of-12 free throws for 33 percent compared to 9-of-14 for 64
percent for St. Henry. Kiernan said the team needs to concentrate better in
practice to hit them better.

Defensively,
NewCath focused on guard Kelly Coburn and 6-foot-1-inch post Savannah Neace.
Coburn had five and Neace finished with two. Trisha Marks picked up the slack
some scoring 12 for the Lady Crusaders. Stephanie Lewis guarded Coburn most of
the game with Kiernan and Alexus Mayes guarding Neace.

“It was a matter of stopping some of their back-door
(cuts),” Stoll said. “We actually didn’t do a very good job of
that at all. But a win is a win and we’ll take it.”

Jordan
Miller hit a three-point play on a back-door cut to open the game for St.
Henry. But Lewis hit a jumper with 4:20 left in the first to give the
Thoroughbreds the lead for good.

NewCath
outscored St. Henry, 10-2 in the second quarter to go up 19-11 at halftime. The
Thoroughbreds increased the lead to double-figures in the third quarter after
Kiernan’s first three-pointer.

The
Thoroughbreds pulled away in the fourth quarter. But the lead did not feel safe
until Kiernan nailed her other two three-pointers in the fourth quarter to put
NewCath up 40-21 with five minutes remaining.

A Lewis
jumper gave the Thoroughbreds their biggest lead at 42-21 just 35 second after
that. That let NewCath put in the reserves for the game’s final two minutes.

NewCath
placed three players on the all-tournament team. Lewis and Ware joined Kiernan
on the squad.

NewCath
travels to Dixie Heights (8-10) on Tuesday. Game time is 7:30 p.m.

NCC boys 68, Campbell County 64

The
Thoroughbreds snapped their two-game skid against a rival with a deceiving
record Saturday.

Campbell
County (7-10) took the court with Nate McGovney and Corey Holbrook in the
starting lineup together for just the second game this year. McGovney tore his
left Anterior Cruciated Ligament over the summer and did not return until Jan.
5 in a loss to Bishop Brossart. Holbrook received two technical fouls in that
game and had to sit out the last two games.

“This is a little bit of (McGovney and Holbrook’s)
coming out party,” said Grant
Brannen, NewCath head coach. “Campbell
County is a 10th Region contender. I told the guys we didn’t have much game
tape on them because those two haven’t played together much. We knew it would
be a tough one.”

Holbrook
and NewCath sophomore post Drew McDonald scored 27 points each to lead their
teams. Holbrook made 11-of-11 free-throw attempts and McDonald added 13
rebounds for a double-double.

The
Thoroughbreds (13-2) made enough free throws to hold off the Camels. They hit
18-of-35 for 51 percent compared to 15-of-17 for 88 percent for Campbell
County.

Both teams
shot 50 percent from the field. NewCath made 23-of-46 shots including four
three-pointers and Campbell County made 21-of-42 including seven three-pointers.

The
Thoroughbreds also needed help from the reserves as the starters struggled with
foul trouble. After McDonald, Michael Bueter added 13 points and Colin Dupont
scored eight off the bench.

NewCath
played without senior forward Nick Seibert and Brennan Devoto started in his
place. Seibert sprained his left ankle in the loss to Covington Catholic on
Thursday and said he could be out for four weeks. He came out on crutches.

“It was good to have people step up,” Dupont said. “It’s
going to be tough with Nick Seibert being out. But I felt like we did well. We
all have to take a role and do our best. We hope to jell together and play
well.”

The Camels
also had scoring balance. McGovney scored 12 points and Deandre Jackson
finished with 11.

The teams
combined for 48 fouls. Campbell County saw two players foul out and NewCath had
three starters finish with four each.

NewCath
took the lead for good with an 8-0 run early in the third quarter. Campbell
County cut the margin to three twice in the fourth, but came no closer.

The
Thoroughbreds open the All “A” 9th Region tournament at Dayton on Monday. They
take on the Villa Madonna Lightning at 6 p.m.